What's Happening To Me Now?
by Miss Astrid Johnston
Summary: T for safety. 009 takes a long walk on a snowy night. Shortly after, he becomes mysteriously ill. With excruciatingly painful tests and no results or anwers, will 009 be able to last with the confusion and fear that haunts him so? COMPLETE!
1. Bad Beginnings

It was a cold, snowy night of December. Through all the dark clouds, the moon was still glowing through with it's amazing beauty.

The group had decided to take a trip to Japan for a few weeks for some relaxation. The Black Ghost organization was virtually inactive, so they thought it'd be a good idea to take a break for a while. And did they pick one heck of a time to go on their trip. December in Japan was nothing less than glorious. It was truly a beautiful site to behold; a calm, peaceful place in this country during a snowy, moon-lit night.

009 had decided to take a walk on this dazzling night. Though his comrades had warned him on how cold it would be or this or that, he had gone out anyway. He was still a cyborg, after all. What's the worst that could happen?

As soon he opened the door, the cold breeze ruffled his brown hair. He wore plain jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, brown boots, and a black parka to keep him warm. Shivering lightly, he pulled the fur-cut hood of his parka over his head. A fresh blanket of snow had fallen over the area, wrapping it gently until the entire place looked like it had come out of a dream.

After a few minutes he was walking aside the beauteous ocean; crystallized and pure as the moon's reflection shimmered. 009 sighed contentedly. Everything was so perfect and amazing out here, he felt rather guilty of having to walk on the snow and leave tracks.

As he continued onward, his emotions of contentment drooped to sadness as he saw the remains of the old church.

He stared at the broken miscellaneous objects, the broken walls, and everything else while fighting back tears. Seeing the old site never bothered him like this before. Maybe he had been watching one too many soap operas during his spare time. 009 tried to think positive things about this, like how the Father was in a better place now, or this or that, but for some reason, it seemed to propell him into thinking about the future.

Black Ghost would probably be overthrown soon, then all of his comrades would most likely return to their home countries. Everyone he really cared about and loved who hadn't died already would be gone, and he would be left alone. He sighed. It'd probably be the worse parts of his childhood all over again.

009 painfully knew he didn't have a chance in life without a halfway-decent education. He pictured himself broke, jobless and without a home, sitting by the road with a cheap bottle of booze clenched in his right hand. People would walk by, not even paying attention to him, and a few would acknowledge his presence. But they'd just frown upon his pathetic life, if not insult him first. Though he had never really hit the booze hard in his lifetime, he predicted that it would be the only way out of the misery that was to come.

Then there was 003. If they had ever had a chance in a relationship, it would probably break apart like a beautiful glass ornament dropped carelessly to the ground. 009 knew that 003 cared about him, but all in all, he was absolutely useless. Just some half-wit, cheap, Japanese tragic wreck. God, what was his purpose? All he thought he was was just some fighting machine. And that's all that he'd ever be good for. Who would want to marry someone like him, anyway? He thought he'd just be a big load on 003's shoulders, not ever being able to get a highschool diploma, let alone a college degree.

Lately, 009 had begun to lose his confidence in being able to fight against Black Ghost and his killing machines. Every robot or ship or deadly mechanism he made was more dangerous than the last. For all 009 knew, Black Ghost and his henchmen could come up with a brilliant plan to kill them all. His advanced powers didn't matter, even though he was known as the strongest of the nine rebellion cyborgs. His brushes with death had become far too frequent for comfort. Sure, they always made it out in the end, but those were just wild strokes of luck. Luck doesn't last forever for anybody. Not him, nor his comrades.

009 fell to his knees, tears flowing freely down his cheeks.

Sad memories of yesterday, shame of today, and apprehension of tomorrow was all that he felt.

He slammed his fist to the ground in frustration at himself.

"Dear God, what am I even doing here?" He said, his voice scarcely above a whisper. "Was I just born to be like this? Is this my purpose in life?"

If the Father was still alive, 009 just knew he would have gone on about one of his lectures about God and how if you prayed to him, you would be saved by anything and everything. 009 was starting to lose his belief in catholicity, if not any religion.

"... if there is a God..." 009 said, looking up at the sky and standing up. "What the hell is my fate!? If you're up there, just give me a damned sign!" His frustrated voice echoed through the area, taunting and mimicking him.

He buried his face in his arms, and finally, let out every emotion of sadness, fear, and guilt. For what seemed like ages, he sobbed. He could barely control himself, and prayed that nobody could hear him. The tears were seemingly endless; it was like Niagra Falls had been moved from Canada to his tearduct.

As the sky became darker, the temperature began to drop to a dangerously low level, even for a cyborg. Not good.

009 shivered in the cold, and decided it would be a good time to get back home before he became a block of ice. Standing up, he roughly yanked down his parka hood to hide his tear-stained face.

Snow had increased to a blizzard now, and it was very difficult for 009 to see where he was going. If there wasn't such a thing as streetlights, 009 would have never made it. After about twenty-five minutes of wandering around, he finally found the group's rental home. He opened the door to be greeted by many worried faces.

"009, where have you been? It's been three hours!" 004 said.

"Just because you're a cyborg doesn't mean you're literally invincible to everything!" 008 added.

009 tried to protest, but an awful feeling ripped through his body and dumped panic into his mind. He suddenly felt terribly hot, even though he was caked with frost and had left the door open to the blizzard. His head began to pound, and every limb in his body gave of a horrid sensation that made him feel sick to his stomach. He began to shiver uncontrollably. He wrapped an arm around his waist, praying that he could keep his dinner down.

"Joe, are you all right?" 003 asked worriedly.

"I... I don't feel so..."

009 fell flat on the ground, unconscious.

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"Looks like he's fnally coming to."

Blinding lights filled 009's vision as he slowly came to. He looked around; the walls around him were pure white. Another figure appeared in his vision. The wild orange hair and rather large nose was unmistakably 002.

"It's about time you woke up." He said.

"Ugh... did I die?" 009 asked, finding his voice raspy.

"I wish." 002 replied jokingly. "Sadly, you're stuck in the spare room with me. Y'know, you really scared everyone back there."

009 decided to keep quiet.

"Oh, gee... Dr. Gilmore told me to ask you something... oh, what was it... what was it... damnit, my brain won't turn on today." 002 murmured, whacking himself in the head with his palm. 009 smiled a bit at his antics.

"Oh yeah. The Doc wanted me to ask you what you were feeling before you passed out back there. And he's serious about this, too. So if you won't lie, than he won't get mad at me and try to hurt me with whatever the hell he has in his landfill of a desk." The American finished at last, grabbing a pen and piece of paper. "I tried to protest and tell him that this probably wasn't a big deal, but he's all, 'Noooo... if this isn't treated, it could escelate into something even worse,' and I lost him after that in his science language."

"Well... I felt this weird thing..." 009 trailed off, not knowing how to describe it.

"Look, we gotta get all the symptoms down so we can find out what's screwing around with your system. 'Weird thing' isn't what you'd call legit. I gotta write all this stuff down." 002 said, annoyed.

"Well... it was like... if I moved my arms or legs, then it'd give off this really weird sensation that made me feel like I was gonna throw up. The room just got super-hot real fast... my head hurt a lot, and I got all shaky... it was real weird." 009 explained.

"Wow... that sounded like it'd suck to be in your shoes then. Well, I'm gonna go show this to Dr. Gilmore real quick. Anything you need before I go?" 002 asked.

009 shook his head, no.

002 proceeded out of the guestroom. 009 sighed, and let his head fall back onto the soft pillows.

"My God... what have I gotten myself roped into now?"


	2. Things Take a Turn For the Worst

Ah-hem! Before I begin the story, I just wanna thank Crystal remnant for the review. So, thanks! It's nice to see a Cyborg 009 fan that's still here on FFN!

Roll the fanfiction!

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Without even knowing it, 009 had fallen asleep in the guestroom. He was never really a deep sleeper, but just one minute alone in a white room with a decent bed, and he was out like a freaking light. Outside of the room. 002 and Dr. Gilmore were discussing the symptoms list.

"This is strange... I've never heard of anything like this before..." The old man observed, looking at the list.

"Well, can you find the diagnosis or not?" 002 asked impatiently.

"No. I'm going to have to study up on these... and if I still cannot find anything... we'll have to run a few tests." Dr. Gilmore said uneasily.

"What's wrong? It'll probably just be blood tests or something simple like that." 002 replied.

"Yes, but that's what I feared. A while back, I had to preform some tests on earlier cyborgs... and they are known to be quite painful. If one thing leads to another... those might have to be preformed." The doctor said. 002 raised an eyeborw in interest.

"What kind of tests?" He asked.

"That's classified. I can only release it when needed." The old man replied. (A.N: No, I am NOT trying to make Dr. Gilmore sound like Mikuru from Haruhi Suzumiya no Yuutsu.)

"Well, let's just pray that we don't have to get caught up in all that." 002 said. "I'm gonna go grab a bite to eat out at town."

"I'll be studying up on these symptoms while you're gone. Drive safely. Oh, and tell the others that they shouldn't visit 009; I'm not sure if it's contagious or not. Excluding 004, of course." Dr. Gilmore said, walking back into the lab.

When 002 walked into the living room, 003, 007, 006, and 004 were already crowding around here, asking a truckload of questions. 007 and 006 were the ones ganging up on him in the most annoying way.

"Is 009 okay?"

"Has he got something contagious?"

"Can we visit him?"

"Get off me! Jeez..." 002 muttered. He shoved 006 and 007 off angrily. "Beavis, Butthead get up in my face one more time and you're history."

The two backed away slowly, not wanting to get pummeled by the flying cyborg. Man, that would hurt something awful.

"Now, Dr. Gilmore said that he doesn't want anybody except for 004 to go in and check on him."

"Hey, why does only 004 go in to visit?" 006 complained.

"Because, 004's the only one who's body is literally half machine, you moron." 007 replied, scoffing as if 006 was some kind of simpleton.

004 looked hurt by the remark, but got over it quickly. Might as well get used to being called that if he's on this team.

"Well, I'm gonna go out to town for a while. See ya." 002 grabbed his car keys, and walked out the door.

"You should go on ahead and visit Joe." 003 said. Her eyes contained a sad look as she thought about poor 009. "I can only imagine how lonely it'd be in there..."

"Yeah, and tell him we said hi." 007 added hopefully.

"Okay... I'll go check." 004 said, walking away.

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009 stirred lightly, cracking his eyes open. His entire body was practically drenched with sweat, and his head was basically killing him. He tried to sit up, but his stomach roiled harshly. He fell back on the pillows, praying that he could keep anything left inside him down.

_"If I end up puking all over the floor, I'm never gonna forgive myself..." _He thought.

The door then opened, and 004 walked in.

"Morning." 004 greeted, walking over to 009's bedside. "You feeling okay?"

"Not by a longshot..." 009 said shakily. Now, his nausea was escelating like a rocket. This was not going to be pretty at all.

"What is it?" the German asked worriedly. 009 tried to respond, but felt bile rise in his throat. 004 almost immediately read his green toned face and wide eyes.

"Oh God, hold on a sec." He said, looking around for some kind of container.

Just then, Dr. Gilmore walked out. "Oh, good morning-" He was cut off by 004.

"Quick, do you have a bucket or something?" He asked hastily. "Oh damnit, he's gonna spew any minute now." Speak of the devil.

009 leaned over the bed, knowing that no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't avoid whatever was going to happen. He threw up everything that he had practically eaten in the last month. Pain surged through hid body with every heave, and he felt horrible about having to do it all over the floor. He kept it in his mind to clean it up on his own later, and not have to bother anyone with it. He thought he was going to pass out and end up throwing up in his sleep, it was hurting so badly.

This worried Dr. Gilmore quite a bit. If the symptoms stacked up like this and there were so many of them, it might be something serious and more than just a nasty little bug.

004 was by 009's side, trying to ease him through the pain.

"C'mon, you don't have to hold back like this... just get it all up and out of the way; we can take care of it." He said comfortingly. "You're gonna be fine..."

After the episode had ended, 009 hung his head in pure shame. Just yesterday, he was feeling fine, could move perfectly okay, and was as healthy as they come. Now, here he was, leaning over a bed while drenched in sweat, and puking his guts out. On the floor. In front of his friend.

"... I'm such a wreck..." 009 rasped out, hanging his head lower to where his hair covered his eyes completely. Tears welled up in his eyes, and he blinked furiously to hold them back.

"009, don't say that." 004 said firmly. "Everyone gets sick at one point or another, allright?"

009 began to shiver. "You... don't... understand..." Then, another sickening sensation shot through him. Now it was getting harder to breathe as his conciousness slipped. The sensation grew into a horrid pain, and he cried out before falling limp as an abused rag doll in 004's hands.

"This is serious now." Dr. Gilmore said. "Dangerously so..."

TBC


	3. Decisions are Made

Before I start, I just wanna say stuff to my reviewer(s).

to Crystal Remnant: Thank you so much for the reviews. Yush, I loove makin' 009 suffer... we'd be pretty good friends. But still, thanks for the advice! You rock!

Roll the fanfiction!

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009 slowly awoke in the same room, but this time, it was much darker. He assumed that it was nighttime. Getting a close look at the walls, he found miscellaneous medical objects. The beep of a HRM reminded him of the aftermath of the battle with 0010. He soon realized that he was in the infirmary in the Dolphin. He looked around, and could see a figure coming forward. He recognized the figure as it came closer.

"00...8?" He said, finding it hard to speak. He eyed a needle that 008 was holding, and grew nervous.

"Here, this'll only take a second." 008 responded, holding a BD vacutaining needle (A/N: Vacutaining needle is used to collect blood for blood tests. Wikipedia teaches me a lot of stuff.).

"Why... are we back in... the ship...?" 009 asked uneasily.

"After you passed out, you started having seizures. We needed to get you back in the ship's medical bay so we can care for you better. " 008 explained.

009's heart dropped. Now he was having seizures? Things were getting serious.

"Now, you're gonna feel a little prick here in a second..."

008 injected the needle carefully into 009's forearm, and then wrapped a tourniquet around where the needle was held. 009 cringed as he felt the needle pierce through his skin. After a few minutes, the vacutaining needle had a good-sized sample.

"H-hey..." 009 started, trying his best to speak.

"Something wrong?" 008 asked, transferring the blood from a vacutainer to a small vial.

"Has... anyone found... what's... wrong with me... yet?" 009 asked, struggling to get his voice to sound normal.

"Not yet... but this blood sample oughta give the doctor an idea of what might be wrong." 008 responded hopefully.

"Hey... are there any painkillers?" 009 asked. "My stomach hurts..."

008 gave him an apologetic look. "The Doc says that we should probably avoid painkillers until he's found out. Just try and hang in there until we find out, allright?"

009 nodded. He looked up at the ceiling, not knowing if he could 'hang in there' much longer.

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The recreational room of the Dolphin was quiet. Everyone was still a bit shook up from the ordeal the night before.

003 sat in a soft chair, trying to get the awful scene of 009 being racked by seizures out of her mind. How could this all have happened so quickly? One moment he was fine, and the next, she wasn't even sure if he could make it through the night. She felt like she was going to cry at any given moment.

Then, the door to the recreational room opened. Dr. Gilmore walked out slowly, as if hesitating to say something. The look on his face was uneasy and apprehensive, as if the news he carried was deadly. He cleared his throat.

"I have some news." He announced uncomfortably..

Man, if you wanted to get those 7 other people's attention in a flash, that's all you had to do. Everyone looked up at him. Silence fell to where you could hear a pin drop and echo.

Dr. Gilmore cleared his throat again, preparing himself to give out the unfortunate news. "From the blood test, I've examined that 009's disease is not contagious, so you are free to visit him."

"Can we visit him now?" 003 asked.

"Yeah, it seems like forever since we last saw him." 006 added.

"It's been 2 days. Idiot." 002 muttered.

"Hey, are you trying to make some sort of fool of me for mssing a friend!?" 006 fumed.

"You wanna go!?" 002 shot back, cracking his knuckles as if he was getting ready to fight.

"Yeah, I'm feeling good enough to break that bird nose of yours in half!"

"What's that, fat-ass? Y'mind saying that to my FACE!?"

"Both of you shut up or I'm taking my gun hand and whacking all of your teeth out." 004 said threateningly. "Please, go on Dr. Gilmore."

"Okay, then... the unfortunate thing is that nothing that I found added up." Dr. Gilmore said grimly. Silence fell over the room and everyone inside it.

"Are you sure?" 007 asked, breaking the silence. Dr Gilmore nodded.

"Is there anything else that you can do, doctor?" 004 inquired with worry in his tone.

Dr. Gilmore sighed. "I was afraid it would come to this. There's one way that will classify what exactly is wrong with him."

"Well, what is it already?" 002 asked, annoyance in his tone. Then, he paled. "It's not... it's not-"

"I'm afraid it is." Dr. Gilmore replied to 002.

"What are you talking about?" 003 asked worriedly. If the procedure's bad enough to make 002 lose his face color, then it must be serious. This alarmed her.

"It's much like that of a spinal tap, but since 009 is a cyborg, it will have many differences from an ordinary spinal." Dr. Gilmore explained. "One will have to be preformed to collect his human cerebrospinal fluid, and the other will have to be preformed for the machine cerebrospinal fluid. The needle, which is at least 6 inches long, will have to be 12 inches long for both portions of the test."

"He's the best model among us." 005 spoke up. "He should be able to handle something like this."

"That's true, but it's extremely painful. There's a 75 chance that 009 could die." Dr. Gilmore said uneasily. Everyone was in shock.

"Is there anything else you can do?" 003 asked, wanting anything but the chance of 009 dying.

"There are other options, but they are far too risky to do without this one having been done first." The doctor replied grimly. "We have no choice, other than to let him deteriorate."

"It sounds to me like you're saying that one way or the other, he's going to die." 008 brought up.

"But there's still that 25 chance, right?" 007 asked.

"Well, yeah, but one way or the other, 25 is pretty flimsy." 002 replied. "Can't you just do something like give him some medicine or something to see if this clears up?"

"That's the problem." Dr. Gilmore countered. "Cyborgs are designed to be able to intake any time of medication. but 009 was specially designed to be able to have the utmost best immune system, and they decided to simply cut off the ability of enhanced medications for him. With simple ones like Tylenol or Advil and such, he can handle those just fine. But with much more complicated ones like what I'd have to use, it'd damage his system even more, to the point in which he can no longer heal."

"Well... that really puts him in a corner." 006 said. "We don't have a choice, do we?"

"I'm afraid not..." Dr. Gilmore sighed. "This is the only way. We've no other choice."

TBC


	4. HeadOn

Disclaimer: I own nothing, sadly. Review of stuff:

"talking"

_'__thinking__'_

**:telepathically**** speaking:..**

Roll the fanfiction!

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"Is it time for… the test?" 003 asked nervously.

Dr. Gilmore nodded, a grim look on his face. "But, my colleague, Dr. Kazumi, is on his way to help with the procedure. It might be somewhat quicker and safer with someone else to help."

The older man stepped forward. "It's nice to see you all again. It's been awhile." He said warmly to everyone else in the room.

"Have you ever preformed this test before?" 005 asked.

Dr. Kazumi nodded. "Back when me and Dr. Gilmore were younger and the processes of cyborgs were much more primitive, some would dysfunction for reasons unknown. This spinal tap procedure would always tell us what was wrong, but it would sometimes mess them up even worse."

"Man… it'll be really hard on all of us if 009 kicks the bucket in this one." 002 murmured.

"Yeah… he's virtually the best of all of us." 007 added. "He's really a great guy, and we'd all miss him like crazy."

"Could any of us help you in this?" 004 questioned. "If this really is his last moment, it'd be nice for at least one of us to be there..."

"Well… you and 008 are knowledgeable in these types of things, so it would be nice if you could help us." Dr. Gilmore agreed.

"It'd be our pleasure to help you out in this." 008 said. "Where is 009, anyway?"

"He's down in the medical wing. Once we get down there, could you two help him into the correct position and spread the iodine across his back for us?" Dr. Kazumi asked.

"You've got it." 004 said. "Are you all ready?"

"Wait! Can't we at least see 009 first?" 002 asked.

"Oh… I suppose it couldn't hurt." Dr. Gilmore agreed.

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The room was empty. 009 stirred from his doze, and sat up. Everything was normal, and as usual, lonesome. The only sounds were from the many medical machines that surrounded him 24/7. God, this place was depressing.

"Hey, 009." 004 greeted, walking in.

"Oh… hey." 009 greeted.

"You feeling good enough for a visit?" The German man asked. "Everyone's been missing you."

"Yeah… I've missed them, too." 009 agreed. 004 nodded, and walked back out. When he returned, everyone flooded the room. 009's face lit up to see all of his friends.

"Hey, pal!" 007 greeted heartily. "Seems like forever since we got to spend more than 5 minutes with you."

"And pretty good timing too; 001's finally awake." 003 added, holding the said cyborgs infant in her hands."

**:It's**** definitely been awhile, 009.::.** 001 greeted in that same, telepathic-like voice. **:The**** others told me you've been very sick lately.::.**

"Yeah… hasn't exactly been a cake-walk…" 009 said.

"Listen… 009, there's something we need to tell you." 008 said uncomfortably.

"What?" 009 asked nervously.

"Well… the doctor can come up with what's wrong with you with this one procedure… it's a lot like a spinal tap, except the 6-inch long needle is 12 inches long and it's gotta be done twice because you're a cyborg. It needs to get the machine cerebrospinal fluid, and the human cerebrospinal fluid. It's extremely painful, and it can kill you. We can't perform it without your permission." 008 explained.

009 didn't care about pain or death. "Do it." He said.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" 003 asked.

"Yes." 009 replied in a serious tone.

"Even knowing it can kill you?" 006 questioned, surprised.

"Please… do it. I'd rather die when someone finds out what's wrong with me then passing up this offer and dying empty-handed." 009 asked.

"Okay. Let me go tell Dr. Gilmore, and we'll get you prepped for the procedure." 008 said, and walked out of the room.

002 walked up to 009's bedside. "Man… if you live through this screwed-up disease and get better… you're gonna get a freakin' 30 ounce steak because of your bravery." He said. "And I'm gonna pay for it."

009 smiled. _'There's no way I could eat an entire thing of those… but they sure are good.'_ "You promise?"

002 nodded. "On my life, man."

"Thank you… and I am gonna live through this. I can't promise it, but I'm gonna try." 009 replied.

"009… we're ready for the preparations." 008 said. "I'm afraid all of you can't stay for this one."

Before they all left, everyone had said at least something to 009.

"Knock 'em dead." 002 said.

"I just know you can live through this." 003 encouraged.

"Kudos to you for being so brave…" 006 said, tears filling his eyes. "Good luck."

"I'll pray for you. Be strong." 005 said deeply.

"If you live through this, you'll be the only person with that kind of will power I've ever known. And if you don't live, you'll still be the only person with that kind of will power I've ever known. Be strong for us." 007 said.

**:This**** may be our last goodbye. I really hope you'll survive.**** Good ****luck.** 001 said.

"I'll… I'll try." 009 said. He felt tears filling up his vision from what everyone had said.

Everyone had left the room, and the two old doctors had walked in.

"Here, just lay on your side." 004 coached 009. 009 did so, curling up as he was told.

008 got the cotton balls and the bottle of iodine, and began spreading it over the Japanese man's back. "This is just some disinfectant." He informed.

After Dr. Gilmore and Dr. Kazumi had gotten into the surgical uniforms, washed their hands, and put on the surgical masks and gloves, they were ready to begin.

Dr. Gilmore took out the needle, and the two cyborgs cringed when they saw the length of it.

_'Good God, it's the length of a football...' _004 thought.

"Are you ready, 009?" Dr. Gilmore asked.

"More than ever." 009 replied. He clutched the sheets, waiting for the pain to come.

He waited, and waited, and waited, and waited. Every second seemed like an hour to him as the needle neared his back.

Dr. Gilmore pressed down on the plunger, and the needle broke through the skin.

009 couldn't help but cry out in pain as the agony hit full-force. Take the pain of breaking your knee, getting bitten by about 1000 fire-ants, getting stabbed and shot by a gun, and multiply all of those by 50. That's how great the pain felt for 009.

His screams could painfully be heard up in the recreation room. 003 hung her head, letting the tears roll down her cheeks. Everyone else (even 001) seemed to be on the verge of tears.

It seemed like forever that the needle was in 009. 004 and 008 reminded him to stay still as possible, they had coaxed him through all of the pain, but 009 could barely hear them. The pain was just too horrible for him to bear, but he knew he had to stay awake. All of the promises and words of encouragement that everyone had said to him replayed in his mind like a record, and that's what gave him the will to stay conscious. Soon, Dr. Gilmore had collected enough human cerebrospinal fluid.

009 sighed a breath of relief when he felt the needle exit his body. He was completely exhausted from the pain and screaming, and had worked up a good sweat.

004 knew that 009 must have been thirsty to the bone, and dehydration was the last thing you'd want during a procedure dangerous as this. He found a water bottle nearby, opened it, and handed it to 009.

009 gladly accepted the fresh, cool liquid. He drank it down until half the bottle was gone.

"We'll give him some time to recover before the next one." Dr. Kazumi suggested. The three agreed.

"That was fantastic, 009." 008 encouraged. "You came through that beautifully."

"Y-yeah… but… oh God… it hurt so much…" 009 said, trying to forget the pain. "And it's gonna… happen again…"

"009, if you can do as good as you just did, you'll sail through the next one smooth as silk. That was just amazing." 004 said.

009 nodded. "Right…"

Soon, it was time for the next one.

"009, I just want you to know you're doing great." Dr. Gilmore said. "Just one more, allright?"

009 nodded. "Bring it on."

Dr. Kazumi readied the next needle, and handed it to Dr. Gilmore. He injected the needle, and 009 felt that same, horrid pain. Only this time, it felt much worse. He cried out in pain, feeling the needle sink deeper and deeper into his skin. Little black dots gobbled up at his vision, and he tried desperately to fight them off.

"No… I can't… not gonna… I've got to… live…" He said. The words replayed in his mind like a record, urging him onward and onward.

"Not gonna... die... no... not gonna... gonna live...!" He clutched the sheets even harder.

Then, the heart rate monitor began to increase steadily until it was dangerously high.

"Gilmore, hurry and get the rest! If this goes on for much longer, we'll lose him." Dr. Kazumi warned.

"Just a bit more, and... there! We've got enough." Dr. Gilmore sighed a sigh of relief. He ever so gently pulled the needle out of 009's back, praying that he wouldn't break it while it was inside the skin.

Finally, 009 felt the relieving feeling of the needle exit his body. He let out a huge breath he had held. It was finally over.

009 had gone against the odds, but it wasn't over yet.

It was far from over.

TBC


	5. We Have An Answer Or Do We?

Disclaimer: 009's dream in this story might be a bit more than T, so be careful.

Okay, quick vocal run-through.

"talking"

_'thinking'_

**.::telepathically speaking::.**

Roll the fanfiction!

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Dr. Gilmore just couldn't believe it. Even with the hardest evidence he could find, he found no fault with the two samples. All of the horrific pain that 009 had gone through was just a complete waste.

"This can't be right… this just can't be true." He said, looking up from the microscope. "Everything's the way it should be… hold on a second."

He peered back into the microscope for a double-take, and then saw something nobody could have guessed.

009's vitamin B12 level was dangerously low.

"Does that mean… this could be a completely neurological disease?" Dr. Gilmore said to himself. "This must be it."

He stood up, and rushed out of the examining room to tell the others.

As soon as he walked in the recreational room, again, everyone was there. The acknowledged his presence as soon as he came in.

"Did you find out yet? I'm not sure if I can afford that steak..." 002 said, earning confused looks from everyone.

"No, but I've got an idea of what it may be." Dr. Gilmore said. "The symptoms don't match exactly, but I'm 75 percent sure that it's a neurological disease. I just need to perform a quick test that won't even take five minutes." With that he went down to the medical wing.

"Boy, does he go fast when his mind's hot." 002 commented.

"I really hope this is it." 003 said. "It's only been a week, but it seems like he's been through so much."

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009 lay on the medical bed, trapped in a nightmare. He shuddered and whimpered in his sleep every so often.

-------------------009's Dream-------------

The sky had turned an eerie shade of purple. The wind roared as lightning flashed in the sky like neon lights. Thunder crackled and roared through the distance.

009 and the rest of the team were spread across a rocky field. He looked around; everyone seemed emotionless.

"003?" 009 called out. The woman didn't respond; she just stared off into space like everyone else.

He called out to everyone else, but they didn't respond. A loud roar of sirens echoed throughout the area. 009 looked ahead of him, and saw a dark figure advanced forward, covered by shadows.

"W-Who are you!? What have you done to my friends?" 009 called out.

"Only to the extent of what you'd deserve." The voice was deep, and it sounded so familiar. The shadows disappeared, and 009 saw that it was Black Ghost.

Fury pulsed through his mind, and he charged forward. "I'll kill you!" He released his fists upon Black Ghost's chest in the utmost rage, but it was all futile.

"Now now, I wouldn't be so hasty." Black Ghost replied calmly, not moving an inch. He laughed, and snapped his fingers. 009 heard several thumps behind him, and turned sharply over. He thought he was going to be sick when he saw.

001 had blood soaking through his pacifier and down his neck. His eyes were exposed. They had a look of fear, chiseled upon his face from the time-freeze of death.

002 had a huge slash across his arm that was bleeding profusely and had puss coming out of it. He had several knives sticking out of his body, and his boots were dripping black goop and dark, red blood. Machines were scattered across him; his jets had clearly exploded.

003 had a look of desperation and terror upon her face. She was cut up in several areas, and had a huge bruise across her cheek. There was a red spot circling her neck; she was choked by someone with quite a strong hand. 009 thought he was going to die.

004's torso was exposed, and machine parts and their wires had been yanked out. Foam was dripping down his mouth, and his deep, emotionless eyes were both sporting severe shiners.

005 had a massive boulder covering his body. There was a huge gap between his neck and his head; he was decapitated.

006 had endless bullet holes across his body, with blood seeping out each of them. He was killed in a gunfire battle.

007 made 009 cringe. He had a bullet wound starting in his left temple and ending out his right. Some pink material had oozed out the holes; his brain. In one hand, he clenched a pistol. He had been so overcome by fear, he had shot himself.

008 made 009 want to scream and run away. Where his left eye had been was an empty hole. He had nails dug into his head and burn marks streaking his body. His face was twisted in an agonized scream that had been frozen upon his features.

"And now it's your turn." Black Ghost murmured, capturing 009 from behind and cupping a strong hand over his mouth.

009 struggled desperately, trying to wriggle free of the evil cyborgs man's grip.

"I think I shall have some fun with you…" Black Ghost said. He pulled out a powerful gun, which was surprisingly like the size of a regular pistol. He used his other hand to restrict 009 completely. He shoved the gunhole into 009's mouth, and had his finger wrapped around the trigger.

009's eyes widened in fear, and he thrashed around wildly.

"Shh... it'll be all over soon." Black Ghost muttered evilly. His finger pushed the trigger tighter, and tighter…

---------- End Dream -------------------------

009 shot straight up in bed, a cry had echoed his lips.

"009, what on Earth is wrong!?" Dr. Gilmore said. "You look as though you've seen a ghost!"

009's double vision and dizziness kicked in, and he regretted sitting straight up like that. He recalled the horrible dream, and actually thought it was real. His eyes were darting around wildly, were wide, and filled with fear. He was breathing hard, and covered in a cold sweat.

"T-they're… not… n-n-no… why…?" He whispered, his voice weak from shouting so much in his dream.

"What kind of a twisted nightmare were you having?" Dr. Gilmore asked. "You look horrible."

009 looked up to Dr. Gilmore, fighting back tears. "Is… e-everyone… alive… are… are they?" He asked.

"What do you mean? Of course they're alive; they're alive and well, 009!" Dr. Gilmore answered.

009 slowly recovered, and came back to reality. He breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that it was all a wild dream.

"Oh, thank God… it was just a dream…" 009 breathed. "I'm fine now…" He lied. Though it was just a dream, the visions still haunted him mercilessley. He tried to place them in the back of his head.

The double-vision faded away to a much more tolerable state, and was able to focus on Dr. Gilmore's two eyes; not four.

"So… did you find out what's wrong yet?" He asked hopefully.

"I think I have… I need to run one more test, first." The old doctor said. "Don't worry; it has no pain whatsoever. Just come stand by me."

009 got up, and walked over a little unsteadily.

_'__Hm__… his balance isn't normal.'_ Dr. Gilmore noted mentally.

009 was standing right next to Dr. Gilmore, awaiting further instructions.

"Now close your eyes, and stand on one foot." He ordered. 009 did so, but as soon as he lifted one foot in the air, he stumbled to one side.

Luckily, he caught himself before his face was planted on the floor.

"Next, close your eyes once more. Now I want you to touch your finger to your nose." The old doctor instructed.

009 closed his eyes, and brought up one finger. He tried to touch his nose, but clearly missed by touching his cheek instead.

Dr. Gilmore nodded. He had all the pieces of the puzzles now.

"009, we've got it. We've found the diagnosis." He stated, joy rising in his voice. "We've got it. It's a low count of vitamin B12, and can be resolved with just a few injections."

009 felt as though he could fly. He finally, finally had a diagnosis. Suddenly, 007 burst through the door.

"Is the mystery solved?" He asked. "I heard you outside the door! All of us heard it!" He said cheerfully.

Dr. Gilmore nodded, grinning from ear to ear. "It's nothing major, or terminal. He's going to be fine." He reported.

Without warning, everyone was in the room.

"We did it!"

"It's finally been found!"

"009 pulled through!"

"This calls for a celebration! I'll cook up one hell of a feast for everyone!"

"006!"

They all had a fantastic time that night. Festive spirits were in everybody. They had a wonderful party, but little did they know that their troubles were farthest from over. Especially for 009.

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It is not over yet. Muahahahahaha.


	6. False

It had been a week after the diagnosis was "found". 009 was still haunted by that dream every single night, but he dare not tell anyone. Sure, they got curious when they heard him shouting in his sleep, but when they came to check on him, he merely lied that he had simply stepped on something and it startled him, or this or that. Every single time, whoever came to check would always believe him.

Except for 002. He always had the urge to tell 009 that he was lying, but he always ended up going along with the rest of the group. So nobody knew about 009's secret… now.

The exact cause of 009's disease was that there was some sort of intestinal wall that was keeping him from absorbing the vitamin B12, so he had to take daily injections.

And boy had it helped. He felt so much better nowadays, hanging out with his comrades some more and exploring the many things Japan had to offer. And throughout all of the fun, those thoughts that had all started at the old church site still lingered in the back of his mind.

And they never left.

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Morning had well risen by 11:00. Oddly enough, 009 was still asleep by then, and he never slept in past 9:00. _Never._ And, since 004 was the type of person to take it upon himself to make sure everything is in check, he decided to try and wake up 009 from his little hibernation.

"Hey, 009! Wake up already!" 004 called from the other room.

009 winced as he heard 004's voice. Today was nothing less than a crappy morning. His head would not stop pounding like a giant bass drum. And no matter how hard he tried to clear his lungs, there would always be that urge and need to cough in the back of his throat.

"Ugh… what… time is it…?" He responded groggily.

"You've slept in 'till about 11:00. The latest you've ever slept it 9, so I just wanted to see if you're still alive."

"It's fine-" 009 tried to continue, but broke out in a massive coughing fit. He curled up amidst the tangle of sheets and comforters in his bed, recoiling with each cough. As it progressed, 009 just felt the loss of control of his body. He just couldn't stop. Every single harsh expel of air made it feel as though he was going to start gagging.

004 knew that something was wrong. He let himself into 009's room, only to see the cyborg curled up in his bed, coughing like he couldn't control it.

Thankfully, the awful fit of coughing subsided, but that didn't necessarily make 009 feel any better. Now his head felt like it weighed as much as an elephant, and said elephant was sitting on it. His nose felt as though somebody had deliberately shoved two blocks of led up his nostrils, just so he couldn't breathe. 009 had heard of some cold going around the place, so he assumed that he had simply caught it.

"My God… 009, are you okay?" 004 asked worriedly. 009 nodded.

"Yeah… I caught that cold that's been going around… it's just something I need to sweat out for a couple of days. No worries." 009 said tiredly. He yawned, and snuggled back into the pillows. "I'm just gonna get some rest…"

004 nodded, believing every word. "Well… just call if you need something." He said, and walked out of the door.

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"Today's weather will probably storm-" Click. "In other news, the new park was established today-" Click. "Will and Grace will be right back after these messages." Click.

004 lied on the couch, channel surfing and finding nothing that really spiked his interest. Nothing but sitcoms and Christmas specials were what he could find. He turned the TV off, and set the remote on the coffee table. Nothing was on TV and it was rainy outside, so 004 decided to just crash on the couch.

He pulled a small throw pillow up under his head, and soon fell asleep.

**-IN 004's DREAM****-**

Everything seemed so dark, like the inky black sky of midnight was surrounding the empty void that 004 stood in.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" He called out.

His voice didn't even echo. It was an empty void, with nobody there.

Then, a single light turned on to reveal a feminine silhouette. The woman stepped out, only to reveal the short hair and beautiful features of her face. It couldn't be…

"… Hilda? Is that you?" 004 asked.

The woman nodded, and smiled as she approached 004. "Yes, dear…" She said. "I have missed you so. But I have something crucial to tell you."

"W-wait… I thought you died… why are you here?" The German man inquired.

"Albert, love… I came from above. I did what I could; I transmitted a dream to your mind so I could communicate. Now… what I came to tell you…" Hilda hesitated; this wasn't going to be easy.

"Is it important?" 004 asked. If Hilda was coming from above to tell him something, then it must be crucially important.

"009's diagnosis was incorrect." Hilda said in a serious tone. "It isn't over yet."

004 was speechless. After everything before… 009 had gotten so much better… but it was wrong? The diagnosis, the findings, all of it? They were all lies?

"What…?" 004 stammered. "How… can that… be?"

Hilda hung her head in sadness. "I'm sorry… but I had seen it from heaven… and the last thing that I wanted is for you to have to go through any more pain than you've already had… because you've had more than plenty of suffering."

"Hilda, there is no need to apologize. I'm glad you came to me now, so I know that we can find a better treatment for him. But… do you know what the diagnosis is?" 004 asked desperately.

"It's unidentified." Hilda murmured sadly. "Nobody knows what it is… that's why the professor will have to study everything hard… and he may have to come up with a cure himself."

004 nodded in understanding. "It's good to know that we have somewhat of an answer." He said. "Hilda… thank you for telling me… I really miss you, you know…"

"I've missed you so much as well…" Hilda said sorrowfully. "But… at the night of my death… I just wanted to say that you did the right thing."

Hilda tried to continue to speak, but suddenly, there was a harsh, machine-like screech that blared through the area. Countless beams of light surrounded Hilda, and she began to disintegrate, right before 004's eyes.

"Hilda, wait! Isn't there any way that you can stay? Please!" He begged as Hilda continued to dissolve into nothingness. Hilda managed a smile before the last of her disappeared.

"Be strong… for there are many hardships to come… be strong for me, for your team, and 009… I love you, Albert." She said before she completely dissolved.

004 fell to his knees, trying to keep himself from breaking down.

"I love you too… Hilda…" He managed to choke out before everything collapsed around him, and it was all gone.

**-END OF DREAM-**

Something was shaking 004 as he tried to sleep.

"Hello… wake up, sleepy-head… hellooo… Earth to 004… any day now…" That droning, upbeat voice belonged to no other than 007.

"Mm… what happened?" 004 asked as he sat up and rubbed the weariness from his eyes. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to tell you that me and a couple of the other guys are gonna go and hang out for a couple of hours. Do you wanna come?" 007 asked. 004 shook his head, no.

"I'm just gonna stay here and sleep." He replied lazily. "Go on out and have your fun."

008 sighed as they walked out. "Y'know, you could have just written a note or something, instead of having to wake him up like that."

The door shut, and 004 relaxed back on to the couch. It felt as though he had heard something very important before, but he couldn't remember…

"It'll come back to me." He said quietly to himself before falling into a dreamless sleep.


	7. Back with a Vengance

009 was absolutely horrified beyond sanity. Everything seemed so unfamiliar and horribly frightening. He didn't know where on earth he was.

His memory of being a cyborg had been completely wiped out. Anything beyond his daring jump over the cliff to escape from the police who blamed him for a crime he didn't commit was all lost. He looked around the unfamiliar area in which he awoke, and rashly got out of bed.

"Where am I…?" He thought out loud with a panicky voice. "The church… it was burned… but… I just jumped, and… it doesn't make sense… how did I wind up here…!?"

Then, the door burst open as 004 shot inside like a rocket. His glare was filled with worry and shock.

"009, what the hell is wrong!?" He cried. The sudden movement nearly made 009 jump out of his skin.

_'Oh God, it's the cops!'_He thought fearfully. The last time he encountered them, he was nearly positive that they were going to shoot. 009's mind began to play tricks on him, and 004 looked exactly like the policemen who aimed their revolvers at him. His mind only told him one thing; get out, and get out fast. Whatever the circumstances were, he was going to get out. No matter what.

He made a dash for the door, but 004 blocked him. 004 had no idea of what 009 was going through.

"You're not going anywhere until you tell me why you were screaming." 004 demanded.

He looked so much like the police. 009 cowered against the wall, curling himself up as tightly as he could and held his head in his hands, fear surging through him like 1,000 electric volts.

"I-didn't-kill-the-priest, I-just-found-him-there-I'm-sorry-I'm-I'm-sorry!" He nearly screeched his bunched-up words, desperately trying to get closer to the wall and farther away from the stranger who shouted at him. "Please-don't-hurt-me-I'm-innocent! Really! Don't-shoot, don't-shoot!"

004 was officially confused. "009… what the hell has gotten into you?" He asked, softly this time. "You act like you don't even know who I am."

009 relaxed his tense body, but refused to let his guard down. He looked at 004, his eyes still wide with panic. "I-I… I don't know who you are… b-but… who is 009? Where am I? Did I survive the fall?" More questions raced through 009's head to fast that he couldn't keep up. He felt sick with fear.

Suddenly, there was another loud bang and someone stomping inside.

"What in God's name is everyone freaking screaming about?!" 002 stormed inside, looking furious as hell. "Jeez, can't a guy sleep anymore?" He looked over at 009, still wearing his frustrated and angry face.

009 was absolutely horrified as more unfamiliar people walked in. His body was shaking violently and panic mercilessly wracked his mind. Without any warning at all, bile shot up his throat and soon gave to retching painfully. All over the _carpet _floor.

"Oh, for the love of God!" 002 groaned. "009, can't you freaking control yourself!? This ought to be fun to have to scrub out… for me."

"002, give him a damned break!" 004 shot back. "He's lost a lot of his memory so he doesn't have the foggiest idea of who any of us are."

009 trembled as the retching ceased. He felt so ashamed of causing so much trouble to these complete strangers, and now they were arguing about him. And to top that, he had just made a huge mess of the nice place. He now officially _hated _himself.

"What!?" 002 shouted back, shocked. "How did that happen!?"

"No clue." 004 said grimly. "I just heard him shouting and I ran down to check on him, he thought I was somebody else from his past who was trying to shoot him, and he completely flipped out."

"And why the hell is he barfing his brains out like this?" 002 asked impatiently.

004 sighed, and glared at 002 with a look of frustration. "Maybe because you scared him out of his damned wits? Really, you've got anger issues."

"C'mon, Heinrich." 002 said, droning out the first part of his sentence. "Memory loss and puking isn't normal. It's probably that awful disease coming back with a vengeance."

"What? But I thought that it's been taken care of!" 004 shouted back, horrified. Obviously, he had not remembered the fatal dream. "Are you saying that Dr. Gilmore was wrong!?"

"What're you trying to say?! That I'm stupid!?"

"Stop fighting, please!" 009 cried desperately. "I'm such a burden to everyone, and people that I don't even know are arguing about what's wrong with me! I'm sorry that I don't know anything and that I can't remember anything!"

002 looked at 009 empathetically. He felt guilty that he had yelled and scared 009 like that. The poor guy barely knew who he was, and he had just barged in there, shouting.

"Look… if I freaked you out, I'm sorry. I just assumed that you knew who you were, and-"

"Why? Because that's what normal people are like? That's what normal people can do, isn't it?"

"Look, I know it seems like everything is going too fast to keep up with and you're scared, but you've got to trust us. About a week before, you were really sick. We thought we had given you the right cure, but, like my friend said, we could have been wrong. We think you might be getting sick again, and that may be why you can't remember." 004 explained. 002 looked at 004 with an expression that seemed to say, 'Oh, _now_ you believe me?' 004 stared daggers at him, and then focused back on 009.

Tears slipped down 009's cheeks as he grasped the information. In a quivering voice, he said,

"I'm going to die, aren't I?"

Then, it felt as though the world was spinning to 009. He felt like he was on the surface of the sun, and he thought that he was going to be sick again. Without warning, he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.


	8. Truth

_'Voices… I can hear… too soft… what are they… saying…?'_

009 muttered as he began to come to. He barely cracked his eyes open, and pure, white light nearly blinded him. He recoiled, protecting his eyes with his arm. His eyes widened as he felt something tugging on his arm. His eyes traveled across his skin until he saw an IV tube sticking out.

_"An IV tube!?"_

Just as he expected, there was a pouch of liquid that hung upon a pole on a wheel.

009's eyes darted around wildly. What was he doing in the sick bay of the Dolphin? Panic rose inside him; why was he here? Did something happen? What if-

His panic rush was cut short by the door opening. Dr. Gilmore walked in, wearing that infamous face of worry and concentration.

"Dr. Gilmore! What am I doing here? How did I get here? Is something wrong?" 009 bombarded the old doctor as soon as he got within earshot, sitting straight up.

The doctor stood at 009's bedside, sighing deeply.

"009, I am deeply sorry… I feel horrible about this entire ordeal…" He began.

"What? Why are you sorry?" 009 inquired in a panicky voice.

"I might as well give it to you straight." Dr. Gilmore sighed yet again, and finally uttered those words that turned 009's life upside-down.

"I'm afraid that I have misdiagnosed you."

009 felt as though somebody had punched him in the stomach with an iron fist. He just sat there, wide-eyed and shaking as he struggled to absorb it all.

"B-but… I… I thought it was just a cold…" He said with an unstable voice. "I just fell asleep, and then I wound up… in here…"

"You did re-awake. In your room. You had lost your memory and you began to vomit, then you passed out. You barely knew who you were, and who any of us were." Dr. Gilmore explained, cringing at the awful site that had just reoccurred a couple of hours ago. "004 reported this to me when he and 002 had to carry you in here. And… we do not have a diagnosis."

009 was at loss of words. He just sat there, aghast. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be real. He must have been dreaming. If being misdiagnosed was the case, then it'd mean working much, much harder to find the real diagnosis. How many more tests would there be, and how painful would all of them be? Flashes of critical medical equipment, blood, and other gruesome things flashed in his mind wildly, overwhelming him.

"009?" Dr. Gilmore said, trying to get 009's attention. "009! Snap out of it!"

As the wild, flashing images seemed to be getting bigger and even more realistic in 009's mind, his eyes widened as if the most horrifying thing was standing right in front of him. He clutched his head with both hands, falling back onto the bed.

"Oh God… no… this… this can't… no…" He murmured between gasps of air.

Suddenly, Dr. Gilmore heard the beeping of the heart rate monitor as it increased at insanely high speeds. 009 thrashed wildly from side to side as an awful sensation wracked his body. He didn't know what it was, but whatever it might have been, it felt as though it was killing him.

"Oh no, he's going into sinus tachycardia!" The doctor exclaimed as he studied the heart rate monitor.

009 screamed as he felt his body recede into a pain equal to that of the spinal tap. He clutched the sheets as he felt the searing agony pulsate through him in awful waves. All he could hear was Dr. Gilmore hollering at him to wake up as the old doctor rattled him by the shoulders, trying to snap him out of the spasm.


	9. Words are like a Knife

"I see you've been enjoying the multitude of dreams I sent you, 009." The voice was dark as the inky black midnight sky, and cold as stone encrusted by ice.

009 slowly stirred, only to find himself amidst a deep black void. He looked around, and could see his friends standing there. They all surrounded him, and their faces carried absolutely no emotion whatsoever.

"Where is the voice coming from…?" He thought aloud. Wait… that voice was so deep and had that evil sound to it… it couldn't be…

"Black Ghost!?" 009 called out. "What do you want!?"

"Your pathetic cries of pain." The same voice replied darkly. Even though you couldn't see where the voice came from, you could almost feel that whoever said it was smirking with sick pleasure.

"No… this is just a dream… you're not really here!" 009 replied fearfully.

"Hmph… on the contrary, 009." The evil tone retorted.

"Y-you're… you're Black Ghost, aren't you?" 009 said.

"Yes, and I'm afraid that you may know too much about your little ailment." The voice replied.

"What?! That doesn't make sense!" 009 shouted into the darkness. He was too late. Black Ghost was long gone.

Then, there was a excruciatingly loud screeching noise that blared through the void. His friends did not carry any emotions at all, even when the world began to crumble to nothingness.

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"For God's sake, 009, wake up!" That was undoubtedly 002's voice.

"What… what happened…?" 009 asked weakly.

"You were thrashing around in your sleep like a madman. God, what were you dreaming about?" His voice was oddly annoyed. That seemed somewhat unlike 002.

"I don't… know… can't remember…" 009 tried to think back on what he was dreaming about. Suddenly, he recalled Black Ghost's voice blaring in his mind. His eyes widened as the voice he heard began to replay in his head even louder. What was happening? He dug his head into his pillow, trying to keep himself from screaming bloody murder.

"Hey! Someone get in here and help 009!" 002 called out in the hallway. "He's freaking out again!"

003 burst into the room with a look of terror on her face. She ran over to 009's bedside as fear surged through her.

009 felt a pair of cool hands slip onto his forehead. He looked up, still trying to dismiss the awful voice that rang in his head like a song that never ceased to replay.

"Shh… it's okay… you're going to be just fine, Joe… it's okay… shh… I'm here…"

As 003's soothing words entered 009's mind, they overlapped the evil voice of Black Ghost. He slowly relaxed, and melted into 003's words. Soon, thankfully, he fell into a dreamless sleep.

003 sighed, and walked over to 002.

"How many times has this happened now?" She asked worriedly. "It seems as though this is more of a mental disease than a physical disease."

002 shook his head in disagreement. "The doctor did a full exam of his head; there isn't anything wrong." Again, his voice carried frustration.

"Do you think… maybe that… Black Ghost is somehow involved in all of this?" 003 brought up. She cringed as she heard the words escaped her mouth. That couldn't be the answer… could it?

"How the hell could Black Ghost be able to do this?" 002 growled. "That's the dumbest thing I've heard yet!"

003 was confused. Jet had been acting out a lot lately. What was his problem?

002 glared at 003. Normally, he felt empathetic for 009, and was always trying to help. As time went on, he began to grow more and more irritated whenever 009 was around. Something would go wrong, and 002 would get the urge to blame it all on 009. He didn't kow why he had these feelings of... almost hatred. He'd try his best to shove them in the back of his head and forget, but they'd always come back. Now, he just absolutely hhated 009.

"It was just a suggestion-"

"Forget it! I'm sick and tired of all of this!" 002 shouted. "All it's been lately is 009 this or 009 that, and I've had it! Ever since he's gotten sick, it's been all about him and nobody else!"

"I-it… it isn't my fault." 009 said shakily. Obviously, he really hadn't been asleep. He looked hurt as he struggled to sit up.

"Oh, now Mr. Help Me is up, huh?" 002 said, stomping over to 009's bedside. "Y'know, it wouldn't kill you to do some stuff for yourself one in a while!"

"Do you think I enjoy being like this?" 009 retorted weakly. "Do you think I want this?"

"I don't know, and frankly, I don't give a rat's ass about it!" 002 yelled.

"I'm not asking you to feel sorry for me; I'm not asking you to even care. Just don't insult me like that."

"Insult you? Oh, you got that all wrong, buddy. You're just a huge burden to everyone, and Dr. Gilmore's probably gonna end up sleep deprived after staying up every night, studying your dumb symptoms! Maybe you should just shut up and accept the fact that you're not gonna get better!"

"This is what you always do when you get mad at something." 009 replied. "Maybe you should try and swallow your pride and saying that you're frustrated with me without spewing it out like a nutcase." 009 had just crossed the line for 002.

"I don't have to listen to any of the crap that you think you know about, you… you pathetic son of a bitch Jap!" He fumed. Then, 002 grabbed 009 by the shirt, and shoved him across the room. "You shut up before I beat you senseless!"

003 gasped. "002, what are you doing?" She cried.

009 landed and crashed against the wall. The force knocked the wind out of him, and he struggled to breathe. He was deeply hurt by 002's words.

"You're just like a sad little puppy that's been kicked down. You enjoy all of this attention, don't you?"

009 bit his lip, trying to fight back the sob in his throat. 002 egged him on.

"Don't you!?"002 landed a hard blow to 009's chest, knocking the wind out of 009. Then, in one quick motion, 002 grabbed him by the shirt collar and hoisted him in the air.

009 struggled to catch his breath. The moment was tense, until, in a quivering voice, 009 shouted,

"I don't want any attention! I don't want any of this! I want to _die_!"

Then, 002's words came to him as he realized what he had done. He dropped 009 to the ground, and took a step back, shocked.

"009… I'm sorry… I didn't mean to…"

009 shot him a look of pure anger. "You did mean to! You hate me!" He shouted. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he comprehended what 002 shouted at him. "You'd like it if I passed away! You'd love it!"

"009, I-"

"I don't need this! I don't need any of you!" 009 screamed. He summoned up every ounce of his strength, and he shot out of the room like a rocket.

As soon as 009 was gone, 003 approached 002 angrily.

"What the hell is your problem!?" She shouted. "What made you do that to him?! This is inexcusable, 002!"

"Look, I feel bad enough about what I did; I don't need this from you, 003." 002 said. He absolutely hated himself for what he did. How did he let that happen? He was usually able to control these immense feelings, but this time was just crazy.

"Oh yeah?" 003 said. She felt tears well up in her eyes. "How do you think 009 feels? You called him that awful word, tossed him across the room, and tried to beat his brans out! Can you imagine how much damage you've done? Why did you do that?"

"003, I don't know what in the world got into me, either. I'm really sorry, and now he's probably lost. Because of me. I'm going to find him and make up."

003 didn't respond.

007 ran into the room. "002, what did you do? 009 just charged out on us, and it looked like he was crying! What did you say to him?"

"I don't need it." 002 said. "I've got to go find him." He briskly walked out of the room. A few seconds after the two could hear the door slam hard.

"What happened here?" 007 demanded. "Did 002 and 009 get into some sort of fight?"

003 nodded sadly. She glumly told 007 all of the gruesome details of the fight the two got into.

After the explanation, 007 seemed shocked.

"How could something build up in 002 like that? He's always griping about this or that, but it's never been this serious." He said, dumbfounded. "That must've really hurt 009…"

003 looked away. "Yeah… well, I just hope that the two can work this out."


	10. Runaway

009 didn't care where he was going. He just kept running. Running away from the painful tests, the guilt, the place where he was a burden, all of it.

All he had to do was pump his legs, and he would get farther away. Just keep on going, and they wouldn't find him.

009 lost track of how far away he had gotten from the apartment. He could feel the snow's cold biting him, and his bare feet had long before gone numb from the sleet covered ground beneath him. But he didn't care. He didn't have to care anymore. He could just run away, and they would forget all about him.

He finally stopped to glance back. He spun around, and the street lights were only a dim flicker in the blizzard. He had obviously gotten far away.

He felt absolutely exhausted after running so far away. He fell to his knees, gasping for air. The cold began to overwhelm him. He wrapped his arms around himself, trying to gather any warmth left in his body and use it up. What was alarming was that he could hardly sense anything. What was left was a horrible feeling of being like a giant block of ice that couldn't be thawed. This feeling was now coming in massive, relentless waves. It was pure torture. This probably wasn't going to facilitate whatever he had now, but it didn't matter; his body would simply freeze to the point of no return, and he would waste away like dust in the unforgiving breeze.

His body was violently trembling as the snow piled on him. Why did he run away like that? A few seconds earlier, he thought it was a fantastic idea, but this was too much.

He shook his head; he could survive this just as easily as he survived everything else! He had already made up his mind that he would die right then and there. Dr. Gilmore wouldn't have to feverishly study all of those annoying symptoms anymore, nobody would have to rush him to the infirmary if something went wrong, and 003 would never have to overexert herself to help 009 through the night. Sure, it would be difficult adjusting to his absence for the first couple of months, but they would get over it. Then, they would just forget about it, move on with their lives, and live on happily ever after.

Suddenly and completely unexpectedly, 009 could faintly hear someone shouting at him from a distance. "Hey! 009!" A voice, barely audible over the howling winds yelled. It had that rough-and-tough edge to it… it sounded so much like…

"002?" 009 shouted out, struggling to call back through the waves of pain. God, he was so cold.

"009, what the hell are you doing!?" It was confirmed that it was 002 who was trying valiantly to make his voice heard above the raging blizzard.

009 suddenly recalled what his majorly important task was. He tried to stand up, but he felt completely paralyzed. Now the cold was getting worse. It felt agonizing like that of a giant cleaver in the hands of a psychotic person who was hacking away. He crumpled from his hands and knees, and moaned as the solid concrete slammed against his face.

"009, what in God's name happened?" 002's voice was much closer now. He knew that 002 was close enough to him to be able to feel the warmth from his body, but he felt absolutely none.

It was as though 009 couldn't move at all. He felt completely frozen, and the stabbing sensation continued to wrack him senseless and grow even worse, if that was possible.

002 wrapped his arms around 009's body, and flipped him over onto his back. He took one look at 009 in his horrible condition, and was absolutely shocked out of his mind.

"009… you look like you're standing on a vibrator, you're shaking so much! And… oh my God, you're lips are turning freaking _blue_!" 002 hollered in surprise. "Come on; you need to get back ASAP."

009 struggled in 002's grip, trying to wriggle his way out.

"Hey, calm down!" 002 said firmly. "You must be freezing by now; don't tell me you wanna keep running."

"Y-you… y-y-you h-hate… I-I'm… such… a… burden…a… damned… burden…" 009 said through his uncontrollable shaking and chattering teeth.

"Oh God, that whole thing back there… look, I'm really sorry, 009." 002 said desperately. "I just lost my temper; I had no right calling you… that, and-"

"Y-you were right." 009 cut him off. "I'll… I'll never a-amount to a-anything…"

"Don't say that!" 002 retorted. "Look. I really need to have a heart-to-heart with you, but you're in no condition now. Let me help you back."

009 refused to be removed from where he lay. Why should 002, the guy who tried to kill him, have the permission to help him?

"L-let me… g-go…" He said through gritted teeth. He stretched out a shivering arm, trying to grip any bump in the ground and drag himself away.

"009, I know that you're mad at me right now because of earlier, but… c'mon, we can work this out."

009 shook his head in disagreement. Words could not describe how awful he felt at that painful moment. He knew that 002 just lost control, and that he was feeling so much worse than he was himself, but it was still hard to forgive him.

"009, you and I both know you can't stay out here. Not in your condition. Alright? Hate me as much as you want now, but we've still got to work this out. You've got two options; either freeze to death out here, or come back to the apartment." 002 told him firmly. Even though he seemed frustrated, his chocolate brown eyes showed a look of guilt and agony.

"Y-you heard m-me… I-I'd r-rather die." 009 replied with a voice cold as stone. "A-at first… I t-t-_thought_ I was a h-huge burden… b-but now I k-know for s-sure."

"009…" 002's hair concealed his eyes. "Do you really want to die? Do you really want to give up all that you have? Do you know how much that would hurt all of us?"

"…"

"If you were to die, 003 would feel so guilty that she'd kill herself. We'd all feel absolutely horrible without you, and nothing would ever be the same again. So please… for us… come home."

"…"

"Please. Come home."

"I... I c-can't..."

"Please."

"I... can't f-face-"

"009. I'm begging you. I don't want you to freeze and die out here. Come home."

"002... I..." 009 tried to force back the tears that threatened to come. "... okay. T-take me."

002 managed to lift 009 into his arms, and suddenly, 009 felt himself and 002 shooting up in the air at incredibly rapid speeds. 002 tried to keep 009's body as close as possible to his own to collect any body warmth from himself and give it to 009.

009 was overwhelmed by the awful feelings that were shared right then and there. He nuzzled into 002's chest, trying to hide the fact that he was tearing up. He willed himself to not cry.

002 felt something soaking the chest of his shirt. He looked down, to see 009 trying to cover himself up. But at a certain angle, he could make out 009's eyes filled with tears. 002 moved a hand up to the back of his head, attempting to relax the hurting cyborg. He could feel his own eyes well up with tears. He leaned into 009's ear, and in a soft, quivering voice, he whispered,

"It's okay to cry."


	11. Return and Clearing Up

A/N: Allright, I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! But, with my latest chapter, it seems to have more people confused than amused. Well… heh heh heh… that is a future twist that will soon become clear. So… just hold on until then.

Roll the fanfiction!

00000000

Everyone turned their attention to the apartment door as it burst open. Snowflakes filed into the open room from the wild blizzard undergoing outside. 002 rushed inside with his wild orange hair pushed down by the wetness of the melting snowflakes, and was holding 009 bridal-style. Everyone gasped when they saw 009's features; he was shivering cold, his entire body was encrusted with snow and sleet, and some parts of his face were turning a dark shade of indigo blue.

003 was absolutely shocked. 009's face absolutely terrified her beyond words. She held back a shriek, and took off to find Dr. Gilmore.

"009, what the hell?" 004 shouted in astonishment.

"002, you'd better have one heck of an explanation." 007 said angrily and seriously.

"Are you freaking blind? Do I look like I have time for an explanation? Look at him!" 002 retorted, emphasizing 009's critical condition with frustration. "Get someone in here!"

003 charged down the hallways at top speed with tears leaking through her eyes. She had never been so terrified in her life. She latched her hand onto the door handle, and yanked it open. Dr. Gilmore was studying up on a few things about cyborgs mechanics, but was interrupted when he was 003 standing there with a look of complete dismay on her feminine features.

"003, what on Earth is wrong?" He asked, standing up from his desk. 003 opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a sob.

"Dear child, what is it?" The doctor inquired urgently for the second time. 003 managed to speak once more, but in a cracking, shaky voice, she squeaked,

"… it's 009…"

In a flash, Dr. Gilmore shot down the hallway as fast as his elderly body could carry him (which wasn't all that fast… heh.). When the two finally made it to the door, Dr. Gilmore was shocked. He walked briskly to 002 who held the ill cyborgs. The old doctor examined 009 closely, only to discover he was worse than he looked from a few feet away.

"He's going into hypothermia!" Dr. Gilmore announced rashly. "002, lay him on the couch quickly!"

002 did so obediently. If there was anything he could do for 009, then he'd do it without question and as best as he could. God, the guilt was killing him inside. Dr. Gilmore followed 002, then crouched down to the side of the couch. He rested his hand on the skin between 009's lower left jaw and the back of his neck, and was relieved to feel a weak, but steady pulse. The old man let out a huge sigh of relief. 009 really gave him a scare there.

009 looked around nervously and confusedly. What was going on now? Everything seemed so clear back on the road, but at he got colder; the events surrounding him were far too confusing for comfort.

"That's strange… 009 looks almost as though he's… drunk!" 007 observed confusedly.

"It's just a side effect of the hypothermia. Thankfully, it hasn't gotten to a majorly severe level yet. If we carefully treat it now, then we'll be in the safe zone for now." Dr. Gilmore explained. "We don't need to be so urgent now. 006, would you do us a favor and find something warm and sweet for 009 to drink?"

006's face lit up instantly. "Ooh, how fun! I should make some milk tea with just a sweet tang of honey! Or maybe…" The Chinese cyborgs continued to rant on about all of the classic Asian beverages he could prepare with his skilled cooking.

"Yes, well have fun, but try not to take too long." Dr. Gilmore chuckled at 006's antics. 006 nodded and scurried into the kitchen with a giddy look on his face.

"I'll go keep him company and watch over him so he doesn't end up making 25 different teas in one cup." 007 joked as he followed 006.

The doctor's face hardened back as he looked at 002, as did everyone else in the room.

"002, how could you have let something like that happen? Do you realize what you could have done to 009? Do you have any idea as to how badly you hurt him?" 004 fumed. 002 didn't have anything to say in his defense.

"009 could have frozen to death tonight. What you did was horrid, 002. I don't even know if I could forgive you." 008 interposed after 004. "And I think I speak for everyone when I say that."

003 had returned in the main room by then, and was still too choked up to speak.

"002, say something." 004 said coldly. "009 could have died tonight and you're acting like you don't care!"

"S-stop…!" 009 spoke weakly from the couch. Everyone was surprised to hear his voice, and they turned to pay closer attention.

"002… I… I k-know he didn't… mean i-it." 009 continued. "If I were him… I m-might have let the s-same thing happen. It's f-frustrating, and the a-anger… it b-builds up i-inside us like a b-beast that you can't control… un-until it gets to where y-you can't k-keep it in. That's… what 002 went through."

005 decided to contribute to the conversation. "009 has a point. This mess has gotten to us all at one point or another, has it not? For some, we can keep these feelings from affecting us on the outside, but for others, it is more difficult."

"What I did… I hate myself for it. I didn't know what came over me at that moment, but… I deserve to go to hell and burn for the rest of my life." 002 murmured. "I don't know what the hell happened or how it happened, but… I'm really sorry for what I did. I probably could never live with myself after this… even if I am forgiven. But that's something that I doubt will happen."

"002…" 003 started quietly. "I could sense that something wasn't right with you. Those things can build up and… even after what happened… I just want to say… I forgive you."

"You weren't yourself back then. I can't completely forgive you yet, but I just want to say that I know what you were going through, and it's a good thing that we managed to clear things up a bit." 004 said.

008 nodded in agreement. "We may not be out of the frying pan yet, but we're starting to understand now." Dr. Gilmore agreed with the two, as did 005.

There was a seemingly unbreakable silence to follow after that. Nobody spoke for a long time, until a certain somebody burst into the room.

"It's finally finished!" 006 cheered as he carried a warm drink into the room. He looked around at everyone, confused at the odd silence. "Maybe I came in at the wrong time…"

009 shook his head. "We… j-just ran out of things to s-say…" He shivered still, but forced a smile.

"Y'know, it probably wouldn't hurt to get 009 out of those freezing clothes." 002 brought up in attempt to break the silence. "I'll take care of it."

"Oh. We did get off track there, didn't we?" Dr. Gilmore said. "Yes, that would be a big help if you would. I'll get some extra blankets and what-not, and we'll keep a close eye on 009 until he returns to normal temperature."

002 helped 009 up into a standing position, and the two walked down the hallway into a room with some space clothes. Neither could describe it, but they could already feel some of the troubles clearing up.

Not many, but some…


	12. Another Bad Sign

A/N: I am SO SO SO sorry that I haven't updated, pretty much, AT ALL. But now, I'm finally posting chapter twelve! Yay! So, without further ado…

Roll the fanfiction!

00

"Joe, it's inevitable. We need to talk about what's going on here." 002 said firmly as 009 yanked down the bottom of the dry shirt he had changed into. 009 nodded, and sat down on the spare bed in the blue-painted room walls. 002, for whatever reason, decided to remain standing.

"I know that. There's been way too much tension between us with this whole disease and everything-" 009 stopped to cough-" and I really miss the way our friendship used to be. So be honest. Why did you go insane on me like that?"

002 shifted between feet uneasily. "It's… hard to explain, but…" 009 could tell that 002 was nervous and unsure of why he practically blew up before. "Out of nowhere, all this built-up anger surged through me like lightning, and… I just lost control."

"And knowing you like I have, no offense when I say this, but you're not the type to let things like this bottle up." 009 added.

"No offense taken." 002 forced a smile before continuing. "And before, when you were having those crazy spazz-out things in your sleep, 003 mentioned that Black Ghost might have been involved."

009's eyes widened. It took him a while to finally realize what exactly he was seeing in those dreams.

"003, she was right!" 009 said with a startled voice.

"Are you serious? I need facts. What's been happening in your sleep?" 002 demanded, his mind starving for details.

"Well, a little while before Dr. Gilmore gave me the wrong diagnosis, I started having these awful dreams that… well… all of the team members had been murdered in the most barbaric and disturbing ways- for God's sake, 007 shot himself with a freaking _pistol_- and then… Black Ghost would always show up and try to kill me…" 009 explained with fear thick in his voice.

002 needed more info before he could be satisfied. "Okay. First, what exactly did Black Ghost do to you? I won't think any less of you if you can't answer."

"After… after seeing everyone else be completely eliminated, Black Ghost would grab me in a headlock, shove a gun in my mouth and… swear to God, he'd try to blast my brains out." 009 looked up at 002 with fearful eyes. "And whenever I finally wake up, his voice keeps on echoing again and again in my mind to where it's unbearably loud, and I freak out because it feels like he's looming over me and I'm going insane…"

002 stood there in shock. 009 had every right to be freaking out beyond belief if that's what was going on in his mind.

002 slammed his fist onto the wall in frustration at the evils of Black Ghost. "That's it, then. It's got to be Black Ghost's doing. We've both experienced it, and it's one thing for you to be having unbearable dreams. It's another thing for me to do things that'd I'd never even imagine doing and unexplainable events happening between the two of us. We should try and dig deeper into this thing."

009 nodded, but his stale expression returned. "So… about everything that happened before…"

002 hesitated responding. "I still don't know why, but I can't believe I did that in the first place. I'm really sorry about what happened."

009 nodded. "I'm sorry, as well. If you look at it in one perspective, then it was my fault, too. For running off like that, I didn't help much at all…"

"You can't blame yourself for that." 002 replied. "Well, do you think we could just forgive each other and get this whole mess off our backs once and for all?"

009 smiled, and nodded. "Personally, I've been dying to get things back to the way they were."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, 009 felt an excruciating pain rip through his head. It came on so sudden that it shocked him out of his wits. He groaned, clutching his head as the throbbing pain only grew worse and worse. Then, an old radio in the room picked up massive amounts of static, and soon began to buzz and screech.

"What the hell is going on!?" 002 shouted in dismay. "That old thing isn't even plugged in…" His concern grew for 009 quickly. He leaned next to the brown-haired cyborg, trying to find out what was going on.

The pain intensified beyond belief for 009, and he let out a long, desperate cry of pain. The radio static only grew louder and harder. The lights began to flicker, as well.

"009? 009! Say something!" 002 shouted.

Suddenly, the lightbulbs in the small lamps began to burst, one by one. Everything with an electric connection in the room began to crash or fail. Without hesitation, 002 charged out of the room to find help.

Now what was going on?


	13. Danger Code

"002, what on Earth is going on here?" Dr. Gilmore shouted confusedly as 002 grasped his arm, running at full speed. Anybody would be confused if you had somebody dragging you frantically to a guestroom. 004, 007, and 008 were following in curiosity.

"It's 009! He's flipping out and so are all the lights! Something's wrong here, and it's an emergency!" 002 responded rashly. Dr. Gilmore stopped at the doorway entrance, and was shocked beyond belief at the sight.

009 was on the floor, clutching his head in the utmost pain and screaming in agony, while every appliance that required electricity was emitting a static zapping noise with sparks flying every which way, and the lamps were exploding one by one.

"It's his internal receiver! Dear Lord, it's gone haywire!" Dr. Gilmore exclaimed as he crouched next to 009.

"What's wrong? Is it Joe?" 003 followed close behind everyone else that had joined. She glanced into the guestroom, only to see the horrid sight.

"009, what is it?" Dr. Gilmore said, grasping 009 by the shoulders. "Is your head hurting you?"

009 barely managed a nod before the atrocious waves of pain practically destroyed his mind. The lights soon went completely out in the room.

Dr. Gilmore, in a sudden move, pushed his middle finger and index finger into the back of 009's head with force, hitting a key pressure point. The cyborg soon fell limp, like a rag doll. Dr. Gilmore began to give out orders as quickly as he could.

"Someone carry him out to the Dolphin, and make haste! We need to get his reactor and every pressure point in his body under control or else he may obliterate every electrical appliance nationwide through the radiation of his mind!"

005 wordlessly ran into the room, picked up 009, and raced out to the Dolphin, followed closely by 004, 002, Dr. Gilmore, and 008. The rest decided that it would be best to stay behind and wait it out.

"Dr. Gilmore, is he going to be all right?" 004 asked as he ran alongside the others.

"I can't be for sure… I fear for his well-being." Dr. Gilmore replied.

"Whaddya mean you can't be for sure? He can make it through this; I believe in him!" 002 barked.

"I wish I could say the same." Dr. Gilmore replied. "005! How is he faring?"

"He's still out cold." 005 replied.

After the mad-dash to the Dolphin's main sick bay, Dr. Gilmore had 005 place 009 on the table.



"Strip him quickly; the sooner we get him under control, the better." Dr. Gilmore instructed as he went to a security-locked compartment of the room. He punched in a 7 digit code, and the door opened, revealing all of the necessary equipment. He pulled out assorted plugs and tubes, and an odd mask-like object. When he returned, 009 was stripped down bare and was surrounded by the other cyborgs, who were awaiting orders.

"He needs to be hooked up to a ventilator and brainwave radar. Use these tubes and plugs to cover each and every pressure point, and connect them all to the same radar machine. This is also very crucial." Dr. Gilmore connected the odd mask-like piece to an old machine, and then secured it around 009's eyes and forehead. He strapped the buckle behind it tightly, to where it was secure. He turned on the old machine, which responded with an electric zap. 009's body jolted, and the heart rate increased on the machine that had recorded the vital signs.

"What the hell are you doing to him!?" 004 shouted fearfully. "He's gonna die before you finish hooking all this up!"

"His body needs to stabilize from the jolt. Now help me connect everything else, or else he will die." Dr. Gilmore said gravely. They instantly got to work at connecting everyone else.

00

An hour had passed since 009 was rushed to the Dolphin. Everyone was waiting uneasily in the living room of the apartment. The atmosphere of silence and anxiety that loomed over them seemed to wreak havoc at 003's already worried mind.

"Joe's been through too much." 003 said softly and sadly.

"Way too much." 007 agreed solemnly. "It's hard to believe that all of this came on in such little time."

006 sighed. "We can only hope for the best of his condition…" He said.

Everyone remained silent after that. Nobody knew what would happen next. All they knew was that 009's life was on the line, and this time, odds were against him.


	14. Silence

"Well, that's it. Everything's hooked up, and his condition has been stabilized." Dr. Gilmore announced. The finished sight was horrifying.

009 had nearly every part of his body hooked up to some machine through both thin and thick tubes. A ventilating mask covered his mouth and his eyes and forehead were covered completely by a mask-like piece, covering over half of his features. The mask that covered the eyes and brow that was hooked up to a big machine that recorded very odd readings that Dr. Gilmore explained as brainwave readings. Compared to normal ones, 009's was extremely high and rapidly moving.

"But… what'll happen to him if he wakes up? You said that he was connected to so many machines that anesthesia would be dangerous." 008 inquired worriedly.

"Well, thankfully, I've been informed by 007 that 001 has woken up. With his telekinetic abilities, he surely can communicate to 009 while he is conscious, seeing that he will most likely be afraid of his new surroundings."

As if on cue, there was a knock at the metal doors of the room.

"That's him." 002 said, walking over to the door. He gripped the heavy metal bars, and swung open the hefty door.

007 stood there, holding 001 in his arms. When he first caught a glimpse at 009 on the mattress, a look of shock spread across his face.

"My God… is it really that bad?" He said in surprise.

.: Of all the operating us cyborgs went through, I've never seen a sight like this. :. 001 commented.

"Well, 001's here in case 009 wakes up." 007 remarked, handing 001 to 002. "Good luck."

Dr. Gilmore nodded in acknowledgement.

00

007 walked back into the living room of the apartment glumly.

"Well? How is he?" 006 asked impatiently.

"… horrible." 007 said quietly. 003 felt dread and fear flow through her.

"He had at least 50 little tubes connected to every part of his body, and this oxygen mask and a weird thing that covered the top of his head…" 007 continued sadly. "And the worst part is, they couldn't risk giving him any anesthesia, so he may wake up."

"How horrid…" 003 murmured. "What did he do to deserve this?"

"Nothing. He was one of the bravest young men I ever knew and he was kind to everyone; even with such a bad past life as an orphan." 006 replied forlornly.



"But 009's a fighter." 007 said, trying to lighten the mood. "He's in a nasty situation now, but maybe with our support, he could get through this."

"I'll do whatever it takes for him to recover." 003 said with a hint of determination. 007 looked into her emerald green eyes and smiled.

"We all will."

00

Everything in the medical room was quiet, pardoning the racket that all of the radars and machines were making. Nobody said a word to one another.

Suddenly, the heart rate monitor began to pick up, as did the brainwave monitor.

"He's waking up." Dr. Gilmore noted, cuing 001.

009, hooked up by many, many small and big tubes, was petrified. He felt like knives and needles were pricking every inch of his body, and everything hurt. He couldn't see a thing, which frightened him even more. He felt everything connecting him to something, and the noise that the machines were making horrified him. Then, he heard a voice in his mind.

.: 009, calm down and don't be scared. The incident before put both you and your surroundings in a lot of danger, so we've got you hooked up to a lot of machines right now. :.

"_001…? Ow… everything hurts… please… can't you at least make the pricking stop…? What's going on here…? Why can't I see? I'm scared, and I know you don't want me to be, but… it's just so scary. Why is all of this happening? When can I take all of the plugs off? Please, just make it stop, 001. It hurts…" _009 thought miserably.

.: I'm so very sorry… there's nothing we can do. Just try and relax yourself. :.

"_001? Please… don't let anyone else come here… they'll be scared."_ 009 said to 001 through thought.

.: Fine. :.

"So, is he okay?" 002 asked.

.: I could read his mind, and he's in a lot of pain and confusion right now. :. 001 replied.

"The poor guy… we can't even give him any painkiller injections or anything." 004 remarked.

"You all should go. I'll handle business here, so don't worry about it. I'm sure the others are lonesome." Dr. Gilmore said. "It'd really be best if you all tried to recuperate after the little mishap."

"Yeah… everybody else here has the right to know about this." 008 said quietly.



"And I can only imagine how they're holding up with all of this anxiety about 009's condition." 004 added.

Silently, everybody else left… well, except for 002. He pulled up a chair and sat next to 009's bedside.

"002? Aren't you leaving?" Dr. Gilmore asked. 002 shook his head, no.

"009's in a lot of pain. I can't just leave him." 002 replied.

"But, he might be better off alone. Don't worry- I'll take care of him for you-"

"Look! I never cared for anybody else but me in my life, and I really regret that! I just want to repay 009 for what happened, and I can't just leave him alone. I don't care if he can't hear me or I can't hear him." 002 replied angrily. Dr. Gilmore remained silent.

"Suit yourself…" Dr. Gilmore replied.

00

Hours had passed. 002 was still sitting there, gripping 009's hand in uneasy silence. 009 needed somebody there for him, so 002 hadn't moved since. 001 had been placed in a crib, next to 002 so the infant cyborg could be easily watched over. Surprisingly, he was still conscious.

.: 002. :. 001 said plainly.

"Hm?" 002 replied.

.: 009 wants to say thanks for staying with him for this long, and some of the pain has eased. :. 001 informed. 002 smiled.

"Good to hear. Is he still in a lot of pain, though?" 002 asked.

.: Yes. Very much, still.:.

"…"

.: 002, you've been sitting here for hours. Surely you're tired. :.

"Not one bit." 002 lied. Sure, he was exhausted and was begging for sleep in the back of his mind, but his top priority now was staying with 009.

.: I can tell you're lying.:.

"So what if I'm lying?! I don't care if I collapse from exhaustion; 009 needs someone here for him, and I'll be there.

Then, 009 slowly and shakily lifted his left hand, and rested it on 002's arm. He put in every ounce of strength left in him to give him a comforting squeeze.



.: I can read 009's thoughts. He said you should go. Just because he can't move doesn't mean you can't. :.

After a few tense moments, 002 finally sighed. "Well, if anything happens, just let me know." He slowly got up, and walked off.

00

"Oh, 002, there you are." 005 mentioned as 002 walked into the apartment room.

"Geez, you look beat. You should go back and take a rest." 004 remarked.

"Yeah. Go on ahead." 003 said.

002 sat down, sighing.

"Yeah, but if I do that, then how will I know if something happens to 009?" 002 retorted.

"We'll wake you up if we get any news. Go on now, get some sleep." 006 reassured. 002 gave in, and walked upstairs, leaving anything to happen.


	15. The Cure FINAL CHAPTER

002 knew that there was little chance of survival for 009. Exhausted, angry at himself, worried, and depressed, he dragged his feet up to the bedroom. The staircase seemed longer than usual as he walked up slowly. But after a while, he made it up to the bedroom door. He lazily swung it open, and looked at the blue painted walls that surrounded him. It was a nice, quaint shade of blue that was quite relaxing. Feeling the tiredness overwhelm the other emotions, he collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep in less than a minute.

00

Dr. Gilmore was hard at work in the lab, trying to figure out what was going on with 009. He knew that the receiver was haywire, but why? What sort of chemical could have caused that? He leaned back in the chair he was sitting in, thinking back.

"Hm… first, 009 showed a sign of illness when he came out of the snowstorm… the vitamin b12 deficiency wasn't accurate at first… and then the odd dreams came… they're all connected to the receiver, but how did it start?" He mused.

For hours, he sat there, trying to put the pieces of information together. He hadn't worked this hard to solve something for a good, long time, so he was rusty. Then, suddenly, it hit him.

"That's it! 009 was in the snowstorm at a dangerously cold temperature, so that triggered the deadly chemical! It slowly coursed through his veins, causing different effects to randomly appear." Dr. Gilmore almost shouted. He got up from the chair, and searched feverishly for that one chemical he knew he had. It had been ignored for years, so it was somewhere in the back of the cabinets of medication. Then, at last, he found the turquoise liquid in a dust-collecting bottle.

"Now I just need an empty syringe…" He murmured to himself. After finding one in a drawer and emptying the liquid into the needle, he walked out to where 009 was still laying, being watched by 001.

.: You have quite a look about you. Did you find something? :. 001 asked.

"The cure, yes." Dr. Gilmore replied with joy.

.: What!? You found it!? :. Now, even shock was rare in 001, but this was enough to earn that atypical response.

"Yes. I just need to make an injection, and all should be well." The doctor responded. He kneeled next to 009, positing the needle to be injected into his forearm. He pressed down on the plunger as the liquid drained out and emptied into 009's veins.

.: How long will it take for the medicine to take effect?:. 001 asked.

"Hm… in about an hour, he should be feeling some relief. We'll be able to disconnect him from this mess of wires and chords in about 15 minutes. Even though the side effects will be rough, 009 should be able to make it with our help." Dr. Gilmore explained. So, they waited for the medicine to take effect.



15 minutes had passed, and the brainwaves had calmed down to a normal rate, as did the heart rate and breathing rate.

"Looks like it's time." Dr. Gilmore said as he got up. One by one, he unplugged the plugs that covered 009's body one by one, until there was nothing left. The natural tan color was returning to his skin, which was an excellent sign of recovery. Then, the doctor removed the masks on his face and the monitor. Then, 009 finally fluttered his ruby-red eyes open and looked around at his surroundings.

"W-wha… what happened? Was all that… just a d-dream…?" He slurred.

"Sadly, what you've experienced was real. But I've finally found the cure for your disease, and it's going through your body right now as we speak." Dr. Gilmore said. All 009 could do was stare at Dr. Gilmore for a while. His eyes that were once dulled but now fully colored, showed disbelief and amazement.

"You're… you're joking… th-that's mean, don't joke around like that." 009 said, a few tears stinging at his eyes as he stared in incredulity.

"Why would I fool you like that, my boy? It's true; you're officially cured!" Dr. Gilmore said, putting on a trustworthy and cheerful grin. He rested his hand on 009's shoulder.

"Th-thank you… for all your hard work, Dr. Gilmore…" 009 stammered, finally believing the doctor's word. "I'm… I'm so happy…"

"You should be happy! I should be thanking you for being so cooperative and strong throughout this whole ordeal!" The old doctor replied cheerfully.

"I… I think I feel good enough to go see my friends now." 009 said. "I wanna tell them the good news… can I?" Dr. Gilmore nodded.

009 began to walk out of the Dolphin, and made his way out to the apartment. As he took each step, he thought to himself_, "I'm really gonna be okay. I'm fixed. I'm well." _

When he made it to the apartment door to the main room where everyone was gathered, he opened the door. He put on a true smile, greeting 8 other shocked faces (002 was there).

"Guys, it's me. I-I'm… I'm cured."

THE END


	16. Epilogue

EPILOGUE

(009's POV)

00

I am really lucky to be alive right here and now.

Winter has officially ended, giving way to spring. I walked past the cherry trees, feeling the blossoms brush past me as they fell to the ground. I thought back to the winter months of when I had fallen ill.

Dr. Gilmore had found that it was my internal reciever that had caused my illness, 002's sudden outbursts, and my strange dreams. It all fit together like a puzzle, and that puzzle just happened to save my life. Now, I'm enjoying and appreciating life a whole lot more. My faith has returned to me, just like my hope for a good future. People keep ranting about how I've lost so much weight (especially 006, and how he'll fix that right up with his gourmet recipes) but they also say about how I'm looking better than before. Dr. Gilmore doesn't know exactly what caused the internal reciever to go haywire, but he does know that the disease is gone for good.

I may have been through a lot, but it's changed me for the better. You never know when life's going to end, so enjoy and appreciate it while you can.

00

A/N: Ahhh! IT'S DONE! Yaaaaaaay! After 2 months shy of a year of working on this thing, it's finally done. I feel awesome, too! D

Well… review, please!


End file.
